Catasterist » construction http://catasterist.com the shape of space |architecture, urbanism & design| Wed, 18 Jan 2012 15:40:53 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://catasterist.com http://www.catasterist.com/wp-content/themes/small-magazine/images/c.png Catasterist Super City and Beyond http://catasterist.com/2009/08/super-city-and-beyond/ http://catasterist.com/2009/08/super-city-and-beyond/#comments Fri, 14 Aug 2009 20:44:55 +0000 Kirsten http://catasterist.com/?p=541 my email inbox is full of the notes I’ve sent myself with reminders of things to write about here, everything from bus stops to illuminated nyc. but here’s one I just saw that trumps all those.  it started when I saw this image and caption in the online slideshow accompanying the New York Times article about author Douglas Coupland buying the mid-century house next to his and restoring it as much as possible  (“Saving the House Next Door“):

Coupland is, according to the caption, gazing upon some structures he built with a 1960s toy construction kit called Super City.  I’d never heard of it!  Things being a bit slow at work (economy &etc), research thus ensued.

Wiki tells us that Super City was made by Ideal Toys in 1967. It was removed from the market in 1968. One year only! Apparently the thing was too fussy and fidgety for kids. Everything just makes me want it more. Probably a choking hazard to boot. Look at this page from the amazing instruction manual:

Trying to teach kids how to read floorplans!  Awesome! (The rest of the manual is here.)

 

Turns out Coupland had a show at CCA (Montreal’s cool architecture museum) that featured a city he built with the kit. Cool, cool, cool. And that just reminds me how many other great old school construction toys there are out there…  Legos are great and all, but there’s another world of cool stuff on beyond Legos, Erector Sets, and target=”new”Tinker Toys (although those are pretty nifty, too).

]]> http://catasterist.com/2009/08/super-city-and-beyond/feed/ 2 Every Day, Right? http://catasterist.com/2009/04/every-day-right/ http://catasterist.com/2009/04/every-day-right/#comments Fri, 03 Apr 2009 04:08:19 +0000 Kirsten http://catasterist.com/?p=460 How often do you wonder what a storm drain would look like before it went in the ground?

Like every day, right? What a coincidence—me, too! Well, allow your curiosity to be satisfied. Witnessed on Carmine Street near 6th Ave in front of Joe’s Pizza:

GENERAL FOUNDRIES INC (India)

 

This impressive prouct of General Foundries Inc. hails all the way from India. Note pigeon for scale. Behind the storm drain is the catchment thingy:

one-two-three

 

(The piece in front in the picture above is the frame the drain sits in.)  It’s big! bigger than my bathroom, I believe.

Pretty cool, huh?

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